Like Dancing
by Livi-Love
Summary: Mai once said that relationships were like dancing, and Anzu hates it when Mai is right.


**This is the result of coming up with a single sentence and thinking about it deeply, causing a story to develop around it and me to have to write it out so it didn't take up so much mind space.**

**Fanfiction here is so hectic and busy, with fics flying out of sight just after they land. It's not as lovey-dovey as some of the other fics here but LOLOHWELL.**

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Anzu is in her room, trying to finish some homework, when a phrase enters her head.

Relationships are like dancing.

Mai was the one that brought it up, and Anzu knows this because she is good at remembering which of her friends said what. It had been a casual conversation involving the two of them and Shizuka. Mai had come over to meet up with Jonouchi, and Jonouchi had invited Anzu over for some advice before that. It was one of the few occasions where it was acknowledged that Anzu was a girl, and obviously that meant Anzu knew a lot about what all girls like doing and not doing. Even though it didn't matter because it wasn't a date he and Mai were going on. Not at all. Absolutely not.

Anzu had stayed over because she would be hanging out with Jonouchi's sister after they left, and for what she guessed was moral support. It was strange to see Jonouchi, who was always so sure of himself, not sure of himself for a change. He had wanted her to pretend to be Mai so he could practice not saying 'stupid things without thinking' but Anzu had declined. And whenever she asked him why he was so bothered about a not date, he just told her to keep to the topic at hand. And not to say anything to Mai.

Shizuka had greeted Mai at the door, and Jonouchi told Anzu to keep her busy while he finished getting ready. One moment she had been in his room, telling him that nothing would go wrong, and then suddenly the door closed behind her and Mai started a conversation with her.

Jonouchi was in his room, still getting ready, when Mai, who was leaning against a bit of wall by his bedroom door, remarked, "It's like dancing."

Anzu widened her eyes. "What is?"

Mai waved one hand and shifted her weight. She gave a small laugh. "Relationships. Relationships are like dancing."

Shizuka, who was walking past with a glass of orange juice, stopped and turned. "Really? I've never thought of it like that."

Anzu and Mai smiled slightly. Shizuka, wearing a loose t-shirt that once belonged to Jonouchi and glittery hair clips in her long messy hair, seemed too young to be knowledgeable in anything of the sort. The attention Honda and Otogi gave her may have given a different impression, but the two women knew Shizuka well enough to dismiss it as nothing to raise any eyebrows about. It was, at the moment, more of an amusement to Shizuka than something for her to consider thinking about seriously. That, and Jonouchi was enough to stop anything from happening.

"I wouldn't think you have put much thought into it," Mai said, reaching out and ruffling Shizuka's hair. Her nails clicked. She laughed again. "You've still got some blissful, happy days ahead."

Shizuka forced herself to grin as Mai withdrew her hand. "I think having a boyfriend would be fun! Apart from all the worrying and fussing that is…"

"Your brother just makes it out to have all that," said Anzu. "I'm sure there is much less in reality."

Anzu regretted saying anything as soon as Mai wrapped her arm around her. Mai looked at her sideways with a smirk. "Heh, you're not in much of a position to say that, Anzu. What about you and Yuugi?"

A blush settled onto Anzu's cheeks. "That has nothing to do with anything!"

Shizuka looked torn between ganging up with sophisticated Mai and revealing some of Anzu's confessions, and staying loyally by kind Anzu's side. In the end she remained silent, now unsure whether to stay or go to her room.

Anzu jerked away from Mai, whose arm fell to her side. "Yuugi and I are friends."

Mai realised she'd touched a nerve and sighed, raising her palms towards the ceiling. Her head tilted to one side. "Be that way. Yuugi is certainly high on my list."

"Eh?"

Mai jumped and turned to the open door. Jonouchi was wearing a plain t-shirt and jeans, though for some reason he had put on a bow tie as well. He blinked twice at them.

"Yuugi's high on what list?"

"On my list of the best duelists of all time," Mai replied without missing a beat, taking him by the arm and leading him towards the stairs. She turned around and waved. "Bye, Anzu! Shizuka!"

"Goodbye! Have fun, you two!" called Shizuka.

"It's only your first date so don't do anything too serious! And come back at a sensible time," Anzu added, pleased that she not only got Jonouchi to tell her with a red face that it was not a date, but a blush from Mai as well. She and Shizuka laughed as the other two descended the stairs quickly, complaining with muffled voices so Anzu couldn't make out any words. The two friends looked at each other and laughed again, heading to Shizuka's room together.

The memory ends and Anzu finishes remembering the conversation. She leans back on her chair and stares at the ceiling. It had taken her a while to consider what Mai had said, and even longer to figure out what it meant. Anzu rests her hands on her stomach and her eyelids droop in thought.

She never says much about her-and-Yuugi. She tries not to think too hard about her-and-Yuugi. It doesn't work a lot of the time though and Anzu knows that she can't keep pretending that nothing is wrong.

Anzu pushes herself away from her desk, chair scraping. She just needs something to do. Something to lose herself in. She lets go of the edge of her desk and rises to her feet, walking to her wardrobe and extracting her favourite leotard. Holding it tightly, she hurriedly changes into it. She doesn't feel comfortable being so naked even though it hasn't bothered her before. No one else can see her. Anzu knows that.

Soon she is in the basement that her parents had let be converted into a dance studio. Whatever money her friends spent on Duel Monsters she saved up for this and more. She looks at herself in one of the mirrors. Her pink leotard is getting tight and exaggerates certain parts of her body. It's more to do with her developing than gaining weight, but it reminds Anzu of all the unwanted attention she has received over the last few years. She makes a note in her head to buy a new one even though she already has a lot upstairs.

Anzu goes to the corner where her CD player is and chooses her favourite song for her warm up. While she is crouching, she can't help but think that she doesn't feel like a dancer. Her studio is just her basement, with faulty lighting that Honda insisted he fixed. And she doesn't look like a dancer. She isn't glamorous like the dancers in Broadway. She is plain, with black legwarmers that bunch up as she dances.

She needs a new CD player. It takes a while to close the lid and some of the buttons get jammed if she presses too hard. All the traveling she does with Yuugi and the others leaves relatively little time for her to work and earn any more money, but she would never trade away any of the time she spent with her friends for anything.

Anzu makes her way to the bar and starts to stretch. The song starts somewhat slow with just piano music, then the singer joins in and the music becomes more upbeat. Her voice is beautiful and it still sends shivers down Anzu's body. The song is about finding your way and it stirs something deep inside her, and Anzu wishes that the singer could watch her perform to this song one day.

Then she loses herself in the music, not thinking about where she's going as she spins and leans and shimmies. Anzu went dancing lessons once upon a time but her teacher picked favourites and she was never the favourite. It had something to do with not having perfect proportions or idolising her as much as she was expected to. The teacher didn't like that while Anzu admired her, she didn't want to dance like her but in her own way. Anzu didn't care but after that and other disagreements she left and has taught herself ever since.

Her hands grip the bar, and with her arms and back straight, she lifts her left leg behind her fluidly.

Relationships are like dancing.

Anzu pauses, panting, gazing at herself in the mirror. She imagines Yuugi's reflection and freezes, unable to move. Then from behind him emerges the other Yuugi, and she loses her balance and returns her lifted foot to the ground abruptly. Her eyes flick to the floor for a moment and when she looks back, only her reflection is there. Anzu is still panting and she wipes her forehead with the back of her hand.

She looks behind her. No one. The rest of her body follows her turned head and she leans against the bar, arms hooking around it.

She loves Yuugi.

No.

The other Yuugi.

But Yuugi…

Anzu's lips tremble and she bows her head. Wisps of hair tickle her cheeks but she doesn't even smile.

It would be much simpler if there was only one of them. But she would never wish either away, so it leaves her confused.

Anzu knows Yuugi likes her a lot. She was unaware of it at first but now she knows. It's so obvious yet she doesn't want to comment on it. Yuugi gets embarrassed easily. Also, does she even like him the way he likes her? Anzu isn't sure. She doesn't think so. A part of her does, maybe. But he's Yuugi, her friend. Her dear friend Yuugi. He is her oldest friend and the memories she has of the two of them are priceless, and the memories only keep coming. She loves him but not in the way he loves her. Anzu shakes her head, biting her lower lip. She wants to phrase it objectively so she knows what she feels but whatever she comes up with doesn't feel right. It's hard when she doesn't know what she feels about him. So whenever they're together, she doesn't elaborate on the hints Yuugi leaves- the smiles and blushes and compliments. Anzu acknowledges but goes no further than a grin or a thank you, occasionally accompanied with rosy cheeks.

Then there is the other Yuugi. The Pharaoh. Anzu is more sure of her feelings towards him but is still not completely positive. It was easier when she thought they were the same person, because whichever 'personality' she ended up falling for was still part of the same person. But they are different people and she accepts that no matter how much harder it makes things. The Pharaoh is older and more mature. She doesn't dislike Yuugi's love of games or bashfulness, but the Pharaoh is mysterious and confident and it appeals to her. She can barely imagine herself dating Yuugi. But she can't realistically imagine dating the Pharaoh without doubts popping up after a while. They share the same body. Aren't they aware of what the other is doing? It would be like dating the other one at the same time and Anzu does not want to do that. Even if she doesn't love Yuugi in a more than friends way, she loves him regardless and can't bring herself to hurt his feelings. So she's polite and playful with the Pharaoh but never lets what she feels show because Yuugi is still her friend.

Does the Pharaoh love her? Anzu doesn't know. He doesn't hate her. He likes her. Sometimes, she sees his smiles and gazes and gets a glance at what he really feels about her. But he wouldn't go further than that because he loves Yuugi as well. Not in a sexual way though. She can't explain it but she's seen how they are together and despite her not even scratching the surface of their relationship, Anzu knows that they care about each other deeply. The Pharaoh would never hurt him. So he has to be careful with what he says to her too.

And it's like dancing. Anzu has to be attentive or else she will step on their feet, or when she's facing one of them she will whack the other in the face by accident. And Yuugi has to be on his guard too. She thinks he knows that she is confused but he never says anything about it. Sometimes, he sets Anzu up with the Pharaoh and it annoys her. If she doesn't know what she feels, then she is sure that Yuugi has less of an idea than her. He hasn't got to deal with two Anzus. He doesn't struggle to decide who he loves and in which way he loves. There is only her.

And the Pharaoh, he has to be careful with his footing too. He doesn't want to get too close to her. He will go, one day, and Anzu doesn't want to think about that at all. And there is Yuugi, who the other two adore, and no one wants to get hurt. The kind of love within the triangle may vary but none is more or less powerful than another.

They're dancing. It's awkward but a wrong move may ruin the whole thing.

Anzu ambles over to the CD player and takes a swig from the bottle of water next to it.

She hates it when Mai is right.


End file.
